


Senju Rina (English Version)

by Miss_LilyJolie



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Naruto
Genre: Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Dimension Travel, F/M, Hermione & Ron Backround Bashing, Of Course Shikaku is Not Dead, Post-Canon (Naruto)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-20
Updated: 2019-11-11
Packaged: 2020-05-15 12:20:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 17,848
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19295629
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Miss_LilyJolie/pseuds/Miss_LilyJolie
Summary: Determined to find the family that maybe remains to her, Jasmine Potter changes her life, her name and undertakes a journey without return. Who knows what she's going to find... Nara Shikaku/Fem!Harry Potter.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! This is the English translation of my story. So, English isn't my first language, but I tried because most of the lectors of the French version read it with google translation and it's not very great. I hope very hard I haven't screwed up. If someone is interested to proofread me, DM me, that will help me very much! I will post today all the chapter that had been posted in the French version and, hopefully, kept posting both at the same time. Don't hesitate to tell me what you think of it! Enjoy!
> 
> Edit 11/11/19: I corrected some errors. I also noticed that, unlike the French version, I didn't warn you. So, this is an AU, it takes place after the fourth ninja war, Shikaku and Inoichi didn't die in it. It's not compliant to The Last, Boruto and the Harry Potter's epilogue. And it's a Fem!Harry.

She did not see it coming. Quite objectively, it had to be admitted that nobody in his situation could have foreseen that. After the war Jasmine Potter, The Chosen One, The Survivor, The Savior, had been scrutinized by hundreds of eyes each time she had stepped outside her house.

She had thought of returning to school at Hogwarts, with her friends, to finally have a normal life. Well, as normal as can be the life of a witch. But Ron had decided to skip his last year and accept the Ministry's offer in the Auror's training program, and Hermione had chosen to enter the summer program of Hogwarts to avoid redoing the whole year.

Knowing that she wouldn't stand for a whole year  _alone_ , she decided to follow Hermione in the summer program. At the end of the summer, they were both graduates and where Hermione was asked for her plans, everyone had assumed she would become an Auror.

What was their surprise when she told them she was going to have a rune mastership, in America.

That's when it started. The Burrow's kitchen had become uncomfortably quiet, all of them wondering if they had heard her correctly. Then everyone had added his scandalized comment about her choice. Only George had remained silent, and Jasmine had seen in his eyes that he understood why she needed to get away from England, from their ghosts.

What followed were three long weeks of discussion to convince her to give up, of pressure from the press - _they had dared to inform the press!_ \- And finally, when the time began to fail them, of threat and ultimatum.

When Ron had threatened to break all ties with her, and urge all their friends to do the same, Jasmine knew that despite what they had been through together, their friendship wasn't worth much in his eyes.

Finally, she left England. George, Neville and Luna were the only ones with whom she kept - _more or less-_  continuous contact.

Five years and two masters later, she decided to return to her country discreetly. She still didn't know if she would stay or if it was only temporary, but she wanted to decide without the strain of the public.

After five years without having set foot in England, her first stop was the grave of her parents. She didn't stay long, kneeling between their graves, she let tears flow, thanked them for their sacrifices and ran away. Not able to support beings so brutally confronted with what she had lost.

The visit to their Godric's Hollow's home was not planned. It was an impulse of the moment.

She clenched her teeth when the signboard popped up in front of her, blatant evidence that the minister had used the place where her parents had died to their advantage.

The interior was run down and dusty, abandoned. She spent several hours visiting the house with tears in her eyes. It was in this place that she had spent her only time with her parents. And she had no memory of it.

She couldn't help but notice that, although all the furniture was still in place, there was no personal object. No books, trinkets, pictures, someone had taken everything away.

The last room she visited was her parents' room. She had avoided the nursery, and there is no way for her to set a foot there.

The whole room was emptied too, and her heart sank, she would have liked to find something that had belonged to them...

Then her eyes locked on a floorboard. The third from the left of the bed, it looked like any other, same size, same color, except for a slight detail. A small gap in the top right corner. It was a simple gap, and it could have gone unnoticed, if Jasmine hadn't  _exactly_  the same gap in her room, at Privet Drive. She had done it to be able to access her secret compartment,  _under the floor_.

Her heart accelerated, and she threw herself at it with hope.

The batten rose easily, and below was a wood box. After examining it and recognizing some runes — specially to preserve the wood and the contents — she had opened it.

Inside were two letters and, on the first, her name was written in a beautiful calligraphy.

She didn't know how long she had been sitting on the floor staring at the letter in the open box but, after a while, she putted her hands in fists to keep them from shaking before grabbing the letter to read it.

 

* * *

 

_'My sweetheart,_

_I write this letter without knowing if I would live to see tomorrow. Kami, I don't even know if you'll read it one day!_

_With James, we decided that we would talk to you about your origins as soon as you were old enough to understand..._

I wasn't always Lily Evans.

_To be honest, I've never been, I love my parents too much to replace them, even though David and Rachel Evans were great peoples._

_I was born in a different world, a world where there is no magic but what is called Chakra. Your father aside, Dumbledore is the only one aware of this story, if you need more explanation you can turn to him._

_Where I come from, we have been trained since our youngest age to become shinobi and thus protected those who are precious to us. Long before my birth, my world was in a constant war, a devastating war that decimated entire clans. Then, the hidden villages were founded, which are basically the alliance of the ninja clans of a country to protect it. Konoha was the first hidden village, it was founded in the Land of Fire by my father, the first chief of this village, the Shodaime Hokage, Senju Hasirama._

_Unfortunately, being the daughter of my father didn't bring me only friends and, in the end, one of his enemies managed to take me away. I was nine, I was lost, I was scared but I kept hoping to see my family again. But this man had no qualms about attacking a child._

_He was a master in Fūinjutsu, the equivalent here of a rune master, and he was looking for a way to create a kind of prison-dimension, at least that's what I think I understood. As I was sure, my father eventually found me but, as you can see, everything didn't go as planned. When that man understood that he was cornered, he decided that deprived Hashirama of his daughter was an enough revenge. Then used one of his experimental portals and, under the helpless gaze of my father, threw me through it. This was the last time I saw him._

_I don't know what happened next, but I came into this world, triggering sensors that alerted Dumbledore. He put me in the Evans' house, changing their memories so that they thought I was from their family, to protect me._

_At Hogwarts, I excelled at the theoretical level, but I never had magic. I only managed to put up a front through my Genjutsu, the art of creating illusions with Chakra._

_I spent all my free time studying the Runes in the hope of finding my world, because the memory of my family never left me._

_My father, your grandfather, an exceptional warrior who dreamed only of peace. My mother, the sweet and intelligent Uzumaki Mito, I look so much like her that I sometimes cry while looking in the mirror. My uncle, Senju Tobirama, he was narrow and strict, but he couldn't say no to my big puppy eyes! And my older brother, Senju Ichiro, he was a lot older than me, but I loved him so much. He had married a wonderful woman, Oshiro Misaki, and had a daughter with her just a few months younger than me._

_Tsunade was my best friend. It was my niece, but we were like sister. Dad spoiled her a bit too much, and she caught in his gambling addiction, but she never won a bet! We were raised together, and I believe she has become a beautiful woman. Their faces, in my memories, are blur, but I would never forget the honey color of her eyes..._

_I miss them every day, and I hope one day to find a way to reopen a portal to the Elemental Nations so that you can meet them, you and your father._

_I love you my daughter, my Jasmine, my Rina._

_Mum, Senju Sayuri.'_

 

* * *

 

She spent an hour reading and rereading the letter, without stop to cry.

Maybe... Maybe somewhere, she had family left...

Her eyes finally landed on the second envelope, _'Hokage-sama'_  was written on the top, in the same calligraphy. Suddenly, a golden glow at the bottom of the box caught her attention. Catching it delicately, she surprisingly recognized a Gringotts' key.

The following day, at dawn, the young woman was escorted to a vault by a goblin. Inside, she found all the research undertaken by her mother to open a portal, and it was remarkably advanced for someone who was only in the first year of a runic mastery.

It was with determination that Jasmine decided to finish her mother's work.

That day, she emptied her vaults and began a journey devoted to her research. She visited many countries, learned three new languages and, after six years, was sure to be ninety-five per cent successful.

Having nothing to lose, it was a month after her twenty-ninth birthday that she decided to cross the portal, her whole life stored in her bottomless bag.


	2. Chapter 2

The way through the passage was short and long at the same time, it was a strange feeling, really. One moment everything was almost black purple around her and the next everything stopped, the sunlight suddenly striking her.

She hit the ground hardly, rolling in the grass for a minute before stopping at the bottom of a hill. Breathing a big blow, Jasmine's first reflex - _No, now she was called Rina_ \- was to check that all her limbs were still hanging on her body.

At first sight, she was always in one piece. And alive, which was a fact not to be neglected.

Her enthusiasm dropped when she realized a slight detail. She had no way of knowing if she was close to Konoha, or even if she had managed to get to the Elemental Nation...

Could she risk drawing attention to her by asking questions?

Again, she still needs someone to ask her questions at.

She dusted off her clothes and stood up, determined to get going as quickly as possible. Despite her determination, she was dizzy as soon as she was up.

"Ooh. It looks like the trip has affected me more than I thought..."

Leaning on the trees, Rina tried to find a place in the woods where she could discreetly pitch her tent and her protections.

It took her a good five minutes to find a suitable clearing, and she used a slight ' _Accio'_  to get what she needed from her bottomless bag. A slight tremolo in her magic told her that the trip had exhausted a good part of it.

Resigned, she decided that it was wiser to set up her camp in the muggle way.

After checking more closely her magic reserve, she concludes that she should also not place her Runic protections tonight, and she will have to rely on her senses only, for now.

Less than an hour after arriving in her world, Rina was lying on the bed in her tent, of much better quality than the one she used during the Horcrux hunt. On her guard, not really able to sleep, she thought back to the last years of her life.

Arrived in the United States, more than ten years ago, she was registered in Runic Mastery but hadn't resisted the call of the mixed combat program, a fighting style mixing several muggle fighting styles with magical combat. She was careful not to talk about it, or people would soon assume that she was getting herself ready for the ministry or other such idiocy, but she had ended up enrolling in a double degree.

Years had passed quickly and by the end of her studies, she had been so good that the MACUSA had offered her a job, despite her lack of American citizenship. She had, of course, refused.

When the few friends she had kept asking her why she had decided to go around the world, the runes were her excuse. It was not totally true, but not so far off it that she felt guilty for lying to them. After all, it's thanks to the runes if she could open a portal.

She first spent two years in Kenya where, in addition to her research on runes, local wizards had agreed to teach her wandless magic. Today, she needed her wand only for very powerful spells or really draining magic.

Then, her research had taken her to Japan, the place where dimensional research was the most advanced. It was there that she had spent the last four years. She took the opportunity to learn the language because, according to the documents left by her mother, it's the same as the one they speak in its dimension.

She had learned a lot of things, including meditation, which had allowed her to calm her temper slightly. And above all, that's where she learned-

A sudden noise made her leave her thoughts. Branches had cracked, about ten yards north of her position, and less than a minute later, she was at the entrance of her tent, thinking quickly.

She could use this opportunity to learn more about this world but... If the presence proved to be hostile, she would have almost no way to defend herself. The best thing was to keep them away from her position and avoid approaching anyone as long as she was vulnerable.

A second later, a black wolf with emerald eyes was silently leaving the tent.

She would be eternally grateful to Iriko-sama for helping her to master the Animagus transformation, an asset she didn't spit on.

She was right to be suspicious. It turned out that the noise came from two thugs who were looking for a place to set an ambush on the road that crossed the forest. Before acting to make them flee, Rina listened to their conversation, learning that she was less than an hour's walk from a small village in the southern of the Land of Fire.

The relief of learning that she would have no frontiers to cross didn't prevent her from scarring the hell out of the two bandits.

Back in bed, Rina understood how much the journey had drained her when she fell asleep a second after putting her head on the pillow, despite the lack of protection and her paranoia.

 

* * *

—•—•—

* * *

 

It took her more than ten days to recover completely, not wanting to risk taking the roads without being one hundred percent of her abilities. And as soon as it was done, she picked up her belongings, erased the runes of protection she had placed around her tent and had taken the road to the village. She was quite grateful to the bandits, after all, without them, she wouldn't have found the road so easily.

Having nothing to do other than walking, Rina couldn't help but think about her friends. The little she had left behind at least.

When she returned home five months ago, to say goodbye to them, they were all at Neville's place. She had only stayed two days, and they had a great evening all four but... Ten years had passed, and George was the only one with whom she had kept a real contact.

They were still her friends, but they were not as close as they used to be. They had their own lives. Neville had his wife, Hanna, and his job as a successor to the Professor Sprout. Even Luna was half-settled, she had married Rolf Scamander and was now the mother of two wonderful twins and the editor of The Quibbler. Of course, she still made trips here and there, otherwise she wouldn't be  _Luna_  anymore.

George had married Angelina, and they had two children together and, according to the wishes of his late twin, he had made their store prosper in several other magic cities around the world.

He was also the only one aware of her project, and of its probable imminent success. She told the others that she was planning to move to Japan, but she wanted to see them again before making her mark on the other side of the world.

Now that she had crossed the gate, Iriko-sama wouldn't be long in going to find her friends, if she hadn't already done so, to announce her accidental death in a muggle car's accident, her body being unrecognizable, because the car burst into flame. Iriko-sama would make sure that no one asks too many questions and that she was 'buried' near her parents.

After all, in a way, Jasmine Potter was dead when she had crossed the gate.

It was only George that she couldn't lie to, she couldn't do that to him. Not after Fred.

The Goblins had also agreed to pass her off as dead. Her vault was emptied of all that was not money, all in several scrolls of runic storage safely stocked in her bottomless bag. And she had left the rest in three equal parts for George, Neville and Luna.

When she saw the first houses in the village she was looking for, Rina threw to herself a mild spell. It didn't change her appearance but, after she left, if people tried to remember her, they would only remember a brunette with brown eyes and the most banal features. She didn't want to attract attention with all the questions she was going to ask.

She was initially afraid of being out of place with the black cloak she had worn over her jeans/tee-shirt because of the light wind. But apparently the cloaks were not uncommon in this country, especially for travelers, it's rather her clothes that would attract curiosity here.

The people were all dressed in muggle clothes, no wonder so far, but the style was different from what she had been used to. She did have some kimono and yukata that wouldn't make people looking at her strangely, but they were far from convenient for travel and even less for fighting.

Knowing she had to get organized, her first goal was money. She did not know what the change of this dimension was and then, even if she had known it, she knew enough about money to know that she couldn't just come up with a fortune without risking the economy of the country.

That's why some Potter's jewelry hadn't been put in a scroll.

After asking a passer-by for directions, she found herself behind the counter of a sort of pawnbroker. The man behind the counter gave her a smile, far too wide to be honest.

"Welcome to my shop traveler! I'm sure I know what you need, I'm coming back from the Land of Wind and..."

She cleared her throat slightly to cut him, preferring to avoid his salesman's speech.

"To be honest I came to sell a few things." Her Japanese was almost perfect, despite a slight accent that she couldn't get rid of, despite all her efforts.

The salesman's eyes glowed with interest.

"Oh really?"

She nodded. "Some jewelry that belonged to my grandmother."

She plunged her hand into her bottomless bag and putted out three pretty necklaces, all three in silver and set with different gemstones.

They were already in the vendor's hand before she finished extending her arm.

Not particularly enjoying the glare in the man's eyes, Rina used her Legilimency to listen to the surface of his thoughts.

_Kami, what beautiful pieces! I could get 100.000 Ryo from it! 150 if I sell them separately! Well, well... I must be smart about it..._

"Mmm, actually, these are pretty necklaces... I take them for... Come on, let's say 30.000 Ryo, and only because you look nice to me!"

She just raised an eyebrow, her disdainful look worthy of Malfoy's.

"I'm not completely stupid. 100.000 Ryo."

The man frowned.

"40."

She just added a scornful smile.

"95."

He patted his fingers against the counter and studied her.

"80."

She put her hand on the necklaces, ready to take them back.

"90. Not less."

They stared at each other for long seconds without saying anything. The man's gaze rested on her hand and then on her face.

Finally, he nodded sharply and crossed a door to, surely, the back shop.

When the transaction was over, and she had finished counting the money, not having much trust in him, she greeted the man one last time and left the shop.

 

* * *

—•—•—

* * *

 

Unbeknownst to her, less than a minute after her departure, two silhouettes appeared behind the man, their hitae-ate marked with the barred Kiri emblem slightly reflecting the light.

"Follow her. As soon as she gets out of town, get the money back, and you can keep half of the loot."

The two silhouettes nodded before disappearing.

 

* * *

—•—•—

* * *

 

Her next stop was a women's clothing store, in which she bought a few local and practical outfits. The saleswoman did not even blink when, after paying, she stocked her purchases in a scroll and willingly agreed that she changes into a fitting room.

The outfit was quite simple, pants/leggings in black stretch that came to her mid-calf and a tunic, which reminded her of those that was wearing Iriko-sama, which came to her mid-thigh with open on both sides, from her hips to the bottom hem.

Unfortunately, the only tunics acceptable for her were sleeveless. Seeing her discomfort, the saleswoman had handed her a roll of bandage, explaining that it was common for shinobi to cover parts of their body, often to hide their scars.

Rina had accepted the roll with gratitude.

When she had finished changing, Rina turned to the mirror, bandage in hand, staring at her left arm. The scars that covered it were faded with time, but they were still very visible.

The scars started on the back of her hand, usually covered by a fingerless glove. They dated from her stay at the Malfoy's. At the time, Lestrange had initially hesitated between torturing her or torturing Hermione. She started with the later but was quickly tired of it. She had then passed to Jasmine. Her pride, which prevented her from bending down in front of Tom Riddle, had pushed her to stand up to this woman by suffering her torture without a sound.

Something that did not please the murderer of her godfather. She had then used a dagger, which she later learned was cursed by dark magic to prevent magical healing.

She had started by reopening the scar left by Umbridge on the back of her left hand. Then she had spent hours making new wounds, slowly zigzagging on her arm, alternating her amusement with long ' _Cruciatus_ '.

Later, Ron told her that they had been locked up there for two days, and even though she had the impression that the torture had lasted forever, Jasmine had thought that only a few hours had passed. Because Lestrange had never stopped. Not even a single second.

In her misfortune, Rina was lucky that Bellatrix only had time to attack her left forearm. She had chosen a slow torture.

She drove away her dark memories by shaking her head.  _It was ten years ago, and you got over it!_  
  
Delicately, she wrapped the bandage, starting with the middle of her hand and ending at the elbow. Despite all her thoughts, Rina only felt better when all the horrible zigzags had disappeared from her sight.

She put on her fingerless gloves and dragon-skin boots. She had bought a couple of pairs of combat boots like this one before she came, and she didn't regret it, they didn't stand out of the ordinary here. She grabbed the clothes she had just left to put them in her bottomless bag. Quickly searching the pockets of her cloak, she took out the envelope, still sealed, that her mother had written for the Hokage of Konoha.

She was dying to open it and read it, but she also knew that the seal her mother had used must be important, she did not want to risk damaging it. She slipped the envelope into the only pocket of her tunic, on the left side, which was only noticed after a careful search, and her cloak joined the rest of her clothes in her bag.

When she came out of the cabin, the saleswoman complimented her outfit with a smile and Rina knew she was sincere. She greeted her warmly and left the shop, determined to taste the local food before heading north again, knowing she was only two to three days away from the approximate location of Konoha. It was a hidden village after all.

The man standing behind the counter who prepared her dish babbled happily with her, and Rina took the opportunity to inquire without appearing to.

"...Our village was very lucky you know. The battlefield was not near there when the war was declared!"

Rina thanked her progress in occlumency and meditation -if Iriko-sama wasn't married she would have married her!- because it's only that which prevented her from letting show her surprise.

_The war?_

"...Well, you know, luckily there was the Shinobi Alliance, huh! Here for you!"

He put a plate in front of her and headed for a new customer, farther away. Right when it became interesting!

Catching her chopsticks, she ate slowly, silently listening to the surrounding discussions.

She smiled slightly as she learned that the thugs, she had scared a few days ago, had been arrested, not very cautious in their escape from the "Wolf Demon" to think of avoiding the authorities looking for them.

When her meal was over, she headed back towards the supposed direction of Konohagakure no Sato, allowing herself a slight detour through a candy store.

She dropped the spell that covered her when she was a few yards away from the village, she hated the itchy feeling that kind of spell gave when used too long.

Less than five minutes later, she met three children, perhaps between the ages of ten and twelve, picking up the wood they had visibly dropped. Smiling slightly, she loved children, and she stopped to help them. They thanked her with a big smile.

"Hold some sweets!" She gave each of them some candy, and their smile warmed her heart. She was about to tell them goodbye when a sound of air caught her attention.

When she was in Japan, Iriko-sama's husband, Taro-sensei, agreed to teach her how to handle the blades. He spent the last year attacking her by surprise to teach her to be always on her guard.  _ **Constant Vigilance**_  would have said Mad-Eye. So, she knew that sound, she knew it was a blade coming at full speed in her direction.

From a quick, nonverbal  _Accio_  she pulled out the Gryffindor's sword of her purse and, with a graceful movement, blocked the sword that was coming down her back. The children behind her screamed terrifyingly and gathered in the middle of the road.

Pushing her assailant with her sword, she noticed from the corner of her eye the three kunai send in the direction of the children.

The weapons were too far apart for her to have them all with her sword but...

With a swift gesture she threw herself in their direction, striking two kunai with a wide gesture of the arm. And bearing without flinching when the third lodged on the right side of her abdomen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit 11/11/19: Corrected some errors.


	3. Chapter 3

Removing the kunai from her abdomen with her bandaged hand, Rina repositioned herself in front of the children, ready to protect them. The two shinobi who had attacked them regrouped in front of her, understanding that they didn't have an ordinary civilian in front of them.

She had never been very good at magic healing, but she knew enough to stop the bleeding from her wound. Temporarily at least.

She studied her two assailants, a man and a woman. She didn't recognize the sign of their hitae-ate, not surprising considering that the only one she knew was Konoha's, but she knew that the line that barred it was not a good sign. Not good at all.

The man, a tall dark-haired man with big purple eyes, rushed to her, his sword close to slit her throat. It only took a few shots to make Rina realize that he was targeting the children, pushing her to stay on the defensive. He understood her weak point. She shouldn't take him lightly.

It was with horror and helplessness that Rina looked at a kind of water bullet hit the child the farthest away from her, while stopping the man's sword a few inches from the other two children. The boy, who seemed to be the oldest, made a spectacular leap and landed on a tree at the other end of the road. Her eyes hardened as she turned towards the woman, her features and the color of her eyes clearly showing that she was, at least in a distant way, related to the other shinobi.

The rage ran through her veins at full speed and her magic was unleashed, sending the man waltzing at the other end of the road to hit a tree. While taking care to protect the children, and after putting her sword in her bag, she sent a powerful ' _Bombarda_ ' in the direction of the woman. The disadvantage of her anger was that, due to her lack of concentration, her spell kept its color. Facing a ninja, she was not surprised when, even without knowing the effects, the woman dodged it.

But not expecting a bomb, she was slightly disoriented by the detonation. Without wasting time, she continued to chain the spells, forcing the kunoichi back. She knew she was terrifying, her hair flying around her because of her magic, her emerald eyes glowing surreally, made fierce by her rage. She hated that children was being attacked.

A movement of the corner of her eye caught her attention elsewhere than on the woman facing her. When she turned her eyes, her face was covered in horror and her breath was blocked. "No!"

The shinobi, who had visibly recovered from his altercation with a tree, was standing next to the unconscious boy. His sword in position ready to sink into his little body. She didn't take the time to think, letting her body react instinctively, and Apparated between the sword and the child.

She couldn't restrain her grimace, as she had suspected, her wound almost-healed reopened under the shock of the effort. Ignoring the pain, Rina grabbed the sword with both hands and managed to stop him just inches away from her chest. The shinobi's eyes widened in surprise, but he didn't release the pressure on his weapon, after all, it was first her that he wanted dead.

Rina wasn't pessimistic, she had faced Death more than once and had never given up. But despite all her efforts, when she felt the strength on the sword grow, she sincerely thought that she would soon give in. And that is most likely what would have happened but, suddenly, the sword disappeared from her hands.

An orange blur passed in front of her and the man used his sword to protect himself from it. When he was no longer an immediate threat to the child, Rina allowed herself to turn to the other two. They were no longer alone, three other shinobi surrounded them protectively, placing themselves between them and the other woman. Sighing with relief, she grabbed the little one and apparated with the others, behind the newcomers.

They were young, but his own experience had taught her that it was far from being a criteria for judging of their competence. Two men, one with black hair held in a ponytail strangely resembling the tail of a pineapple and a brown-haired with a well-built body. They were with a blonde woman, her long hair held in a ponytail.

They wore the Konoha's emblem.

"Does any of you have medical skills?" Her slight accent slightly surprised them, but the blonde approached her, leaving her two friends defensively in front of them. She trusted them to cover her back; they had been working together for a long time.

She quickly ran her hands over the boy's body under the anxious gaze of the other two children. "He'll get by, he has some broken side and some internal injuries but nothing that can't wait."

She turned to Rina, ready to heal her wound.

"No, take care of the little one. Don't worry about me. I saw worse. And I can still fight. "

The young woman frowned, ready to contradict her, but Rina placed her hand a few inches away from her wound, wincing as she noticed that Apparating had not only reopened it but had enlarged it, and cast a spell. Her skin closed, but she knew the medic had realized that she had not healed the wound, just closed the outer layer.

Without taking any time, she let the little one gets treatment and walked to the two remaining boys. The blond who saved his life was still fighting Naughty No. 1. She retrieved the Gryffindor sword from her bag, her face determined.

"Take care of her, I'll help your friend." A moment later, she blocked one of his sword strikes with her own sword.

She and her current partner chained the blows, forcing N ° 1 to stay on the defensive. Gradually, the fight moved away from the main road to sink into the forest. And soon they were isolated, just the three of them. Rina had no illusions, after several minutes of two-on-one fighting without them taking over, she realized that her injury was seriously handicapping her.

It had to be stopped quickly, or she would be of no use. The blond created new clones — and Merlin, his ability to create clones was impressive — and they waited for an opening, even small.

Decided, she attacked head-on, forcing him to counter. The sound of metal against metal was resounding. Rina simulated a slight drop in her right side just under the arm that held her sword. Being the talented swordsman he was, he hurried to jump on it, creating an opening in his guard.

Merlin thank you; the blond had seen it too, and he and his clones combined their attacks. Unfortunately, not before she got kicked.

Both on the ground, Rina ignored the pain to launch an ' _Incarcera_ ' on their assailant, breathing with relief as the spell hit him and the ropes wrapped around him.

"Here's a job well done, ttebayo!" The blonde walked over to her and helped her up. "I'm Naruto."

"Rina." She couldn't help but smile at his enthusiasm.

He went to their new prisoner, checking the strength of the ropes.

"Damn useful, that thing with the ropes..."

"SHIKAMARU!"

They both turned to the origin of the scream. Rina recognized the voice of the medic to whom she had left the children.

Once again, Rina thought only a tenth of a second before acting. These people had intervened to help her when nothing required them to, she couldn't leave anything happening to them. Without worrying about the consequences of her injury, Rina apparated.

On the spot she quickly analyzed the situation. Several kunai that had been launched simultaneously to the children and the medic were stopped in the open air by a kind of black veil... was it a shadow? Whoever controlled it, probably said Shikamaru, had missed those who came in his direction.

The scream of his teammate made him turn his head, but he probably wouldn't have time to dodge them all.

Apparating a second time behind him, she put her hands on his shoulders and apparated with him close to the medic and his other teammate. She grimaced as she felt her wound reopen, a little larger than before. Not wanting to waste time and the element of surprise, she held out her hand and threw three ' _Incarcera_ ' one after the other. The woman dodged the first but took the second full whip, the last crashed on the ground, a few inches beside her.

When the ropes wrapped around her, she fell to the ground on her lap.

"It will be necessary to accompany the children in their vi..." she was cut in her sentence by a cough that made her spit blood.

It seemed to wake up the other young woman, who rushed to her, hands already surrounded by a green halo.

"Oh Kami, oh Kami, oh Kami..." Her whisper was so desperate that Rina's heart ached painfully.

She let her lie her on the floor, her hands above her stomach.

"Do not worry about me..." She hated her coughing, because of that she couldn't finish her sentences. "Could you..."

She noticed out of the corner of her eye that Naruto had arrived with their prisoner and laid him down next to his... Sister? Teammate? Pulling the letter out of her pocket with her bandaged hand, and distractedly noting that blood was staining her hands, the envelope and the bandage, she handed it to the one she thought was Shikamaru.

"Please, give this to..." she didn't have time to finish her sentence; the loss of blood making her lose consciousness.

Shikamaru grabbed her hand before it hit the ground hard, gently picking up the envelope.

"It's... It's for the Hokage..."

Naruto moved closer to Shikamaru, looking over his shoulder.

"She had a letter for Tsunade-baachan?! This seal... It's... "

They both stared at the seal that closed the envelope and exchanged glances. He had already seen this seal, during the war and in their history book before that. It was the Senju's seal.

"Ino, report." He put the envelope back in his jacket and refocused himself on the situation.

She shook her head desperately, her hands still above the unconscious woman. "She has several internal hemorrhages and broken ribs. I think her liver and one of her kidneys were affected, Shikamaru... She needs to see Tsunade-sama or Sakura... "

Nodding, he turned to the three terrified children. "It's okay, don't worry... do you know her?"

"N-no..." It was the oldest who had spoken, recovered by Ino's care. "We just met her; she helped us pick up our wood when they... they have..."

Shikamaru put his hand on the crying child's shoulder, trying to reassure him. "Don't worry, she'll be fine. Chōji will take you home and we will take her to see the best doctor in the country okay?"

The boy nodded slowly; his eyes fixed on Ino's hands. Shikamaru turned to Chōji, who nodded and took the children away. "I'll catch you, and you stay safe."

He then turned to Naruto. "Of us three you have the best stamina, you think you can carry her and keep the pace?"

"No problem."

He then went to their two prisoners and checked the ropes that held them in place. They were awake and looked at Shikamaru apprehensively. He suspected that his face had to portray his current emotions quite well. He took out two storage parchments for prisoners and began to stun them and lock them up. If Ino and Naruto noticed that his blows were more violent than necessary, they made no comment.

When Ino had done all she could to save her patient some time, Naruto lifted her up and they left for the village in dead silence.

It took about 20 minutes before Chōji caught up with them and they accelerated their pace even more.

"Rina." Without slowing down, Team 10 turned to Naruto. His eyes were fixed straight ahead and showed all the guilt he felt, the young woman, Rina, tight against him. "She said that was her name. She opened her guard to force him to lower his. I... I didn't see that... that she was hurt... I... "

"It's not your fault; it's me... When she closed her wound, I knew that... that her internal wounds weren't..." Ino clenched her fist, refusing to meet the eyes of her teammates. "But she looked so..."  _Strong. Determined._  She doesn't say it, but everyone hears it.

"She made me think of you, Naruto." Chōji's voice was low, far from his usual joviality.

"That's right, I really thought you were the only person on earth who would risk his life for strangers..." Shikamaru tried a laugh that rang empty, even to his own ears.

Nothing was said during the six hours it took them to reach Konoha. As they crossed the Bridge Kotetsu and Izumo, which were behind the entrance desk, rose hurriedly, seeing the wounded they were carrying.

"Shikamaru, go get Tsunade-sama!" Ino's voice was in medic mode and none of the boys tried to contradict her. "Naruto, we're going to the hospital to find Sakura."

Not caring to stop to declare their arrival at the office, the team separated and they each goes in the requested direction.

Chōji, staying behind to explain the situation, scratched the back of his neck with a nervous laugh as the two dumbfounded Chūnin turned to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit 11/11/19: Corrected some errors.


	4. Chapter 4

Tsunade truly hated paperwork. If there was one thing that would almost make her regret giving in to Naruto and becoming Hokage, all these years ago, it was paperwork.

And since the end of the Fourth Great Shinobi War, less than a year ago, she drowns literally under the paperwork.

Oh, how impatient she was to finally be able to pass that damn hat to Kakashi... She smirked at this thought,  _he didn't know what was waiting for him!_

Rare was the times she could escape Shizune, she often had to hide in the hospital on the pretext of helping Sakura, but she took advantage of that time as if her life depended on it.

Today, unfortunately, Shizune had managed to lock her in her office.

Nara Shikaku was with them, as Jōnin Commander, to decide on the different promotions they had to award. The war had severely weakened their strength, and they were still far from being as strong as before.

At the end of the hour, when the only woman of the legendary trio was resigned to her fate, the door of her office opened abruptly.

It was with wide eyes that the three occupants faced Nara Shikamaru, his hands and clothes covered in blood. Tsunade clearly saw Shikaku tensing, his eyes scanning his son for injuries.

"Tsunade-sama! Ino sends me to pick you up. This woman, Rina, she's hurt." Shikamaru was suddenly stopped, staring at his hands. It was probably the first time he had looked at them since they had been covered in blood.

Tsunade didn't fully understand his reaction; Shikamaru had seen the war, it was hardly the first time his hands were covered with blood.

"Shikamaru, the full version."

He looked at her, eyes bulging, noticing for the first time that his father and Shizune were also present.

He inhaled deeply and closed his eyes.

"On the way back from the mission we came across an ambush that two nukenin of Kiri had come up against a woman and three children. She was about to be killed while protecting one of them, and we decided to intervene. We managed to capture them, but Rina -the woman- was severely injured, Ino ad repaired the most urgent damage, but she couldn't do anything more. She says you're probably the only medic-nin who could save her. She and Naruto probably have already arrived at the hospital to find Sakura."

Tsunade hesitated for a second to scold him on the risks of bringing a stranger inside the walls of Konoha, wounded or not. But after studying his face, his eyes closed forcefully, his features pulled by the fatigue and the guilt that emanated from him by wave, she decided that it could wait  _after_  she was saved the life of this unknown woman.

Without a word, she headed for the hospital, Shizune following her quickly.

 

* * *

—•—•—

* * *

 

The same image circled in Shikamaru's mind as he finished summarizing the events at his Hokage. Her face, white and unconscious, blood flowing from her mouth.

He knew that she had not been so badly hurt when she came back from the forest, and he suspected that it was the use of her instantaneous movement technique that had made her condition worse.

A technique she had used to save  _him_.

It was a hand on his shoulder that made him open his eyes. He realized that only he and his father were left in the office.

"Tsunade-sama left for the hospital with Shizune... Tell me what worries you, son, it's hardly the first time a civilian is injured during one of your missions."

"She... She fought with us, and her wound... She had her wound saving my life. She didn't even know my name, Dad... She didn't even know the names of the three children she was defending... "

Shikaku didn't really know what to say. The injury that a comrade suffered to save your life was always harder to accept than the one directly inflicted to you. And Shinobi of Konoha or not, Shikamaru saw this Rina as his comrade.

He just took his son in his arms.

 

* * *

—•—•—

* * *

 

It took almost thirteen hours of surgery to put Rina back on her feet. Once the operation was over, Sakura, Shizune and Tsunade left their patient to return to the private waiting room where they knew Team 10 and Naruto were waiting for them.

Shikaku and Hinata had joined to the four concerned young adults.

"Tsunade-sama! How did the operation go?" Ino was the first to notice them.

All the occupants of the room turned towards them, waiting for an answer.

"It's a success. That said... I would like to know how she ended up with such injuries."

Relief was readable on everyone's face.

"The original wound was caused by a kunai, but I think..." Ino's gaze snick on Shikamaru quietly for a second, worry on her face again. "I think she suffered the worst damage as a result of using an instant shunshin-like technique... I think, like shunshin, using this technique when you are injured is dangerous, but she decided to use it anyway."

"To save my life."

He had his head down, his elbows resting on his knees and his fists clenched. And the guilt he gave when he came to pick her up in her office had been replaced by anger.

"I was stupid. I lowered my guard, and she put her life in the line to save mine."

There was a tense silence during which no one dared to say anything, surprised by Shikamaru's anger.

"She will take a day or two to wake up, but she will recover... However, she remains unknown to us, and I can't allow her to stay in the hospital any longer, the risk is too great. I had a room prepared for her at the T&I, and when she wakes up Inoichi will take care of her interrogation."

After a slight silence, Tsunade was about to leave when she was stopped by Naruto.

"Tsunade-baachan wait! Shikamaru, the letter."

The young man just looked at him, frowning for a few seconds before a flash of understanding crossed his eyes, and he pulled an envelope out of his pocket. He gave it to Naruto, who crossed the room to give it to her under the curious eyes of all the other people present.

The envelope was stained with blood but still in good condition,  _'Hokage-sama'_  was written on top in a pretty calligraphy.

Her face was deformed by surprise as she turned the envelope over and saw the red wax seal. Where the Senju emblem was proudly marked. Who would dare to use the emblem of her clan to write her a letter? The clan of which she was the last living member.

She opened the envelope with trembling hands, as much apprehension as anger. She slowly pulled out the sheet of paper to read the contents.

 

* * *

 

_'Hokage-sama,_

_I don't know who will read this letter. I'm not naive to the point of thinking that my father is still the owner of this hat... My name is Senju Sayuri and more than twelve years ago, as I write this letter, I was abducted and throwed into another dimension. I searched relentlessly for a way home, desperate to see my family again._

_Unfortunately, without success. My life being threatened, I know that there is no chance that it will happen one day... But I deeply hope that my daughter, my little treasure, my Rina, succeed where I failed._

_Yesterday, we celebrated her first birthday, and I know that I will not celebrate with her the second, that I wouldn't have the opportunity to talk to her about my parents, my brother or Tsunade. I also know that it's possible that she decides to never return to my world, after all, her father is from here. I would never force her to return to Konoha, but neither could I tell her how extraordinary my village is._

_But if she decides to try the trip, I beg you Hokage-sama, I beg you with the heart of a nine-year-old girl who lost her family, accept her._

_Please, accept to let my baby know her family._

_With all my respect,_

_Senju Sayuri.'_

 

* * *

 

 

When she looked up, her breath shaking, she noticed that everyone in the room was looking at her with a mixture of shock and worry. She suspected that her face had probably lost all colors but did not find the strength to reassure them.

"Yuri-nee-chan..." her voice sounded empty in her own ears.

She needed answers. She had to know if it was true. Was this girl her... Was she Sayuri's daughter?

She let go of the envelope and the letter as if they had burned her and, without thinking, ran towards the room of this Rina.

_Rina._

She still remembered the meaningless discussions that she and Sayuri had, perched on her grandfather's stone's head. Sayuri had always said that if she had a daughter, she would give her the name of a flower, to somehow honor her father's Mokuton and perhaps even start a new family tradition.

_Rina._

She remembered the days when her mother took care of Sayuri and her and taught them how to make flowers' crowns. She always insisted on using only lilies and white jasmine.  _'Look how one would think to see a mother and her little girl!'_

_Rina._

She stopped abruptly, arriving in the room she had assigned to her... patient. She didn't remember Sayuri's face or even her voice. She had not opened an album containing pictures of her since her disappearance. But she remembered her hair. She had inherited the hair of Mito, her mother, even if slightly nuanced by the genes of her father they were still inflamed. Red hair that remained etched in her memory.

Hair that her supposed daughter hadn't inherited.

_Rina._

She gently raised her hand to the face of the sleeping young woman. Gently, she put her fingers on her eyelid. She had to see her eyes. She needed to see her eyes. When an emerald-green iris so like that of the jewel was revealed under the eyelid, Tsunade left the tears stuck in her eyes flow.

She pulled back until her back hit the wall and slid against it.

_Sayuri._

 

* * *

—•—•—

* * *

 

Nobody really understood what had happened. Gazes were fixed on the door by which Tsunade had stormed out, stunned. Shizune was the first to recover and went to the letter that put the Hokage in this state.

"So? What shocked Shishou?" Sakura finally asked, after several minutes of silence.

Shizune's eyes travelled several times between the paper in her hands and the young woman with pink hair, her mouth opened and closed several times.

"It's... Kami..." She quickly reread the letter, wanting to make sure she had understood it. "This is a letter from Senju Sayuri..."

Only Shikaku had a reaction, his breathing slightly cut off by the surprise, the others were only a little more lost.

"Senju?" Naruto started, not understanding. "I thought Tsunade-baachan was the last Senju?"

"No one really talked about Sayuri-san since her disappearance... I myself didn't hear Tsunade-sama speak about her until she was in her worst moments. She was the last daughter of the Shodaime..."

Shizune stooped to pick up the envelope as Shikaku repeated the explanations.

"Senju Sayuri was the same age as Tsunade-sama; she was abducted even before I was born. It's said that it happened inside the walls of Konoha. Nobody knows what happened when the Senju brothers' rescue team arrived." Shikaku stopped with a frown.

"My father said it was the loss of his daughter that day that caused Senju-sama's death, a few months later, on the battlefield. That he wasn't fighting at full capacity because, for him, since he hadn't been able to protect his daughter, he was no longer able to protect his village."

He was silent as everyone assimilated the new information. Until finally, Naruto speak again.

"But what about Rina? How did she end up with the letter of a girl who had been dead for more than sixty years?"

"Forty years, Naruto. Shodaime-sama has been dead for forty years! How do you could not know such basic information?" Sakura couldn't help but look at her friend in despair.

"According to the letter..." Shizune cut off Naruto's protests. "It's written that she isn't dead and that... Rina is her daughter. And there was this in the envelope."

Shizune gently pulled a chain from the envelope, a charm hanging idly at the end, representing the emblem of Uzushiogakure in the center of which was marked the emblem of the Senju.

"I think it belonged to Sayuri-san..."

The eight ninjas were staring at the pendant, unsure what to do now.

"Maybe we should go find Shishou?" Shizune looked at Sakura for a second before nodding, and the two women headed to where they thought they would find their Shishou and Hokage.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit 11/11/19: Corrected some errors.


	5. Chapter 5

The silence was tense between the different occupants of the office. The Village Elders didn't really have as much power since they had been  _suggested_  to finally retire.

To be honest, it was the first time in six months that they had set foot in the Hokage office.

"Why did you summon us, Hokage-sama?" Asked Utatane Koharu.

"After the harm you've done to us, it's amazing that you keep need us." Her college, Mitokado Homura, didn't bother to soften his tone.

Behind his desk, Tsunade clenched her fists to avoid making him swallow his disdain with them.

"Well, I don't... Carry you in my heart, but you're the only survivors of my grandfather's and my great-uncle's teams." That had the merit of attracting their curiosity. "Which means that you are also the only survivors of the rescue team going up to try to recover Senju Sayuri. And the only ones, today, to know what happened that day."

Koharu arched one of her eyebrows, elegantly despite her wrinkled face, her curiosity only increasing with the words of Tsunade.

"That's right, indeed." She spoke before Homura could open his mouth and seriously undermine Senju's lack of patience. "But I don't understand why you want to talk about it now, after all these years, and with such an audience."

Her eyes travelled across the room, standing behind Tsunade was her assistant, Shizune, and the Jōnin Commander, Nara Shikaku. Leaning against the right wall, there was the team ten composed of the heirs of the Nara's, Yamanaka's and Akimichi's clans. On the left was team seven with Hatake Kakashi, Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura and Sai and the addition of the young Hyūga Hinata.

"I have no doubt that, despite your retirement, you are aware of our new T&I… Guest." It wasn't a question, and Koharu didn't make her the affront of being denied. "There are indications that she was carrying a letter written by Sayuri... We need to know what happened that day to make sure of its authenticity."

Koharu's eyes flew open, and she barely registered the ' _Kami_ ', whispered by her friend and colleague.

She remembered that day as well as if it happened yesterday, in many ways it was that day that she lost her first Hokage.

"We were too late..." Homura had lowered his head, leaving Koharu to be the one to tell this story. "The man who had kidnapped Sayuri-chan... He was a researcher from Konoha, and Hashirama-sama had stopped to fund his research when he wanted to start testing on human, finding that he was going too far. It was badly received from him..."

Homura let out a half-sneering, half-sarcastic sound.  _Badly received_  was a euphemism. The events that followed marked the lives of many of them.

"He decided that since Hashirama-sama was not able to see the potential of his research, he would prove his mistake by using one of his relatives." Koharu looked away from Tsunade's face, who hadn't stopped fixing her since the beginning of her story.

"We think he has set his sights on Sayuri-chan because everyone knew that she was the only Senju child to have inherited the legendary Uzumaki vitality." The fact that it might have been Tsunade was not said, but everyone heard it. "He took her to one of his clandestine labs outside of Konoha and when... When we arrived..." Her voice broke, and her wrinkled hands formed fists.

"He had already started the ritual." Seeing the distress of her friend, Homura continued the explanations. "We couldn't do anything to stop him. On our arrival, Sayuri-chan was sucked in a kind of purple swirl; we could only see her face terrified a second before it disappears. And the man who kidnapped her died during the ritual, we never managed to find the process that had been used... The only thing we knew was that if it had been a success, Sayuri-chan was perhaps alive, somewhere, in Kami only knows what dimension..."

The silence was deafening as everyone tried to digest this new information. The Elders had an empty look, lost in their memories.

"Who was this man?"

Koharu stared at Shizune, who had spoken.

"The Shodai did everything he can to erase the name of this man from the memories... He wanted him to be forgotten, because he would have done everything to be included in histories' books. We will never forget but... This knowledge will die with us, so, in death, my first Hokage will be entitled to a semblance of revenge."

Despite what one could say about them, they had loved their Hokage - and sensei by extension, Tobirama and Hashirama used to train their teams together. And their team had been an extension of their family. They would make sure to respect his will.

"Do you recognize this?" Tsunade handed a necklace to Koharu, who grabbed it and pulled it to her face to study it.

Her exclamation of surprise was drowned by Homura's. They shared a look; both recognized the pendant.

"Tsunade... If this necklace accompanied the letter, then it is certain that this person met Sayuri-chan after her abduction." She gently put the necklace on the desk, almost afraid to break it. "Mito-sama was sorry for the disappearance of this necklace a few days before... the kidnapping. But we all knew that it was Sayuri-chan who had stolen it from her mother, she was not the best of the criminals." She gave a sad, empty laugh at the memory of Mito-sama's false sadness after the disappearance of the necklace, the woman having tried to inspire guilt to her only daughter.

"It was Hashirama-sama who had it made, he offered it to Mito-sama on the day of their wedding. Sayuri-chan had always loved this necklace, but her mother had told her that she would only give it to her when she graduated from the Academy. She ended up being too impatient, and your grandparents had decided to see how long she would take before being caught by guilt but... Well, with the events that followed, this necklace was not really a priority any more in our minds."

"Can we read the letter?" Tsunade stared at Homura, then looked at Koharu. She had to find what she was looking for as she grabbed a sheet of paper in her drawer and handed it to them.

Homura grabbed it and placed it between them, so they could both read it.

"It's..." Koharu stopped, not really knowing what to say.

"This woman, that Team Ten brought to the village..." Everyone royally ignored the reproach in Homura's voice. "She says she's supposed to be Sayuri's daughter? This Rina?"

"We can't be sure, she's still asleep after the procedure but she has presented herself under the name of Rina to Team Ten. Sakura has already taken samples to compare our DNA, even if it is by our grandparents, we are supposedly connected. The results will confirm or refute the story she tells us." Tsunade gently grabbed her grandmother's necklace and squeezed it in her fist.

"Tsunade... Even if it turns out that this woman is the daughter of Sayuri-chan, we don't know where she landed all these years ago or the life of this girl." Homura ignored the suspicious glances that almost everyone in the room was giving him. "Konoha's security comes before any personal reason you might have. The sudden appearance of the supposed daughter of a Senju family member missing for forty years is, at most, suspicious. With the war which end less than a year ago we must remain on our guard."

Naruto and, surprisingly, Shikamaru was about to protest but were cut by Tsunade before they could say anything.

"You are right. It's my duty to remain neutral in this matter. What do you suggest?"

The Elders looked at each other before Koharu finally spoke. "We think it would be wise for Yamanaka Inoichi to be on charge of the interrogation. The best thing would be for him to read all her memories..."

"What?! But Rina had, what? 25? 30 years? It's going to take him a while!" Koharu turned to Ino, frowning, displeased by her interruption.

"Yes, we suspect that it will take some time for Inoichi-san to accomplish this. We do not impose any delay on him, but she will have to stay in her cell, under the supervision of the T&I, all the time of the intervention."

Once again, Tsunade spoke before anyone could open their mouths. "Understood. Something else?"

While Koharu began shaking her head to mean that no, Homaru opened his mouth. "Tsunade, you must not get in touch with her as long as she is under the responsibility of the T&I."

"No way. I agree to wait for the results of the DNA test before visiting her, but otherwise I will get  _in touch_  with her whenever I feel like it."

Koharu put her hand on Homura's to cut him. "It's actually wiser to wait for the results before both of you meet. We are sure you will know when the time is right, Tsunade-sama."

"Well, I think everything has been said."

The two former members of the council of Konoha took the dismissal for what it was and, after a short bow, left the room. The silence that followed their departure lasted a good minute before being broken by Shikamaru.

"You're not going to lock Rina in a  _cell_  during  _weeks_?!  _Right_?"

"Shikamaru, it costs me to admit it, but they are unfortunately right. Even though Konoha is opening its doors, all those who request entry have their files carefully studied before being given permission."

"But none of them see  _all their life_  to be carefully peeled by the  _chief_ of the unit of analysis of the  _Department of Torture and Interrogation of Konoha_."

" _And none of them claims to be a member of a Konoha's founding clans almost extinct!_ "

Tsunade had risen, hands laid flat on the desk, whose wood made a slight plaintive noise.

"I know what I'm doing Shikamaru. This woman is probably the last living member of my family and she surely made a trip  _interdimensional_  to  _meet me_. Locking her away is the last thing I want to do. But if she doesn't prove from the outset that she is not a threat to Konoha, almost all Shinobi in this village will treat her with suspicion. And civilians will stall on this behavior. Do you think she will enjoy living in this kind of atmosphere? Naruto?"

The young man had thrust his hands into his pockets and was headed to the window, studying the view of his village.

"She's right Shikamaru... I was born here, but it was far from easy. She, she is not so attached to Konoha that I am, not yet at least. She will bear even less the suspicion of the whole village than a few weeks under surveillance. And I'm sure Inoichi-san will treat her well!"

He had a slight, nervous laugh as he scratched the back of his head.

"Of course, daddy will treat her well!" Ino exclaimed, outraged that one even raised the possibility of the opposite.

Shikamaru sighed. "Sorry Hokage-sama, it's just that..."  _I owe her my life._  
  
Tsunade sigh and sat down slowly, exhausted by the last two days.

"Sakura, you will be the iryo-nin affiliated with her file in the T&I. Give me the results when they reach you. Otherwise, I think we're done. Ino told your father that I need to talk to him please."

And without adding anything, everyone came out of the office. Leaving behind them an exhausted Tsunade staring at the pendant lying lazily on her desk.

 

* * *

—•—•—

* * *

 

The room was dark and sinister, despite the large window that let in the daylight on her right. Her right arm was handcuffed to the wall, and she couldn't feel her legs anymore, preventing any movement on her part.

Her jailers faced her, hiding in the dark, and the atmosphere that surrounded them only indicated that she wouldn't like what was coming.

"Let me take care of her..." She couldn't recognize the voice or see her face, but she knew it was a woman who had spoken.

She didn't know where she was, or even how she had got there but the place had a horribly familiar feel.

The woman took a step forward, entering the light.

 _No, impossible!_  
  
"So? Aren't you happy to see me again? You call yourself Rina now... Do you think changing your life and identity will erase your mistakes?"

Bellatrix Lestrange was standing before her, in all her malevolent glory. Her demented smile was as big and terrifying as the last time she had seen it.

"You still hope to escape the justice Rina? After all, it's all yours fault!" She made a great movement of her arms, encompassing the whole room.

Suddenly, the surrounding floor was visible as if the light had been turned on. There, all around her, lay dozens and dozens of bodies. Dead people, some were unknown to her, others not. They were all covered with blood, their throats slit, or their gut eviscerated.

One of the bodies sat down to face her. It was Hermione, her slit throat moving surreally as she spoke. "Why? After all the things we lived together... After all the things we have endured for you... You leave us, without goodbye, without looking back. You let us down."

Next to her, Ron suddenly rose, blood streaming from his mouth and a strange hole where should have been his heart. "We were not good enough for you? We only wanted you to be happy. You would have been happy; you would have become a great Auror. Have we not made enough sacrifices for you? Could you not stay instead of running away like a coward?"

On the other side of the room, Luna straightened up, her stomach crossing through a large gash. "Why does that to me? I supported you, but you didn't trust me. Why simulates your death? Why leaving me in the dark?"

Footsteps caught her attention, and she turned to the last arriving. She was surprised with the sight of Shikamaru, the body riddled by kunai. "I do not even know your name. Why did you kill me? What did I do to deserve death?"

Unable to bear it, she screamed.

 

* * *

—•—•—

* * *

 

The first thing Rina noticed when she woke up was the distant sound of someone screaming. It took her a quarter of a second to understand that it came from her. The second thing she noticed as she stopped the scream was the sound of a door opening suddenly.

With impressive reflexes, for a woman who had spent the last two days unconscious, she carried her body away from the noise, lifted her left arm in front of her face and waving her sword, which she had called with a nonverbal ' _Accio_ ', with her right arm.

After that, it's a lot of details that hit her brain in a second. At first the bandage that covered her left arm was immaculate. The room she was in looked like a mix between a hospital room and an interrogation room. A bed against one of the walls, a coffee table and two Japanese-inspired cushions in the center of the room, an open door that apparently led to a bathroom and finally a large mirror -she would bet everything she had it's a one-way mirror- which took almost the whole wall of the door through which the newcomers had entered.

The three people who were staring at her, their eyes widened with surprise, probably due to her quick movement. The first to enter was a man in his thirties who shared a striking resemblance to Shikamaru. Probably his father.

The second man, roughly the same age, did not share as much resemblance to the young woman who had healed her as the first one had with Shikamaru, but the relationship was clearly there.

And finally, the only woman in the group. She was much younger, maybe 17 or 18, and she had  _pink_  hair. It was a fact that  _need_  to be pointed out. The white coat she wore betrayed her profession.

But as soon as Rina saw Konoha's emblem on them, she dropped her sword and put her hands in the air. The clang of the metal echoed off the walls less than two minutes after they have entered the room.

"Sorry. I'm used to being on my guard." They had stared at each other for a moment before a question came back to her. "How are... Shikamaru? I was not very... focused when I used Apparition with him..."

At the memory of her wound she put her hand on her belly with a grimace. It was there that she noticed that she did not sense any hurt. Regardless of the other occupants of the room, she pulled up the tee-shirt she was wearing to reveal her stomach. Healed without even a scar.

However, she had little time to be gleeful about that, her legs choosing this very moment to let her know that they no longer had the strength to carry her.

Merlin thank you, the – probable - father of Shikamaru had awesome reflexes and caught her before she hit the ground. He helped her to return to the bed, carefully avoiding the sword on the ground.

"He worries about you, but otherwise everything is fine for him. I owe you thanks; you saved my son's life."

_His voice is beautiful..._

She gave a slight smile. "There is really nothing to thank me about; I did what anyone would have done." Neither her voice nor her face showed her traitorous thoughts.

He finally moved away from her gently and leaned against the wall on the side, a slight smile that accentuated the two scars on his face, and Rina wondered how she hadn't noticed them before.

Not wanting to stare at him, her gaze fell on the young woman -  _with pink hair!_  - and her curiosity probably appeared in her eyes, because her cheeks blushed slightly.

She put two of her fingers on the rune on her forehead, "Hmm... Yes, it's..."

"Oh no, no! I know what it is, it's a rune, a seal. That's not it..." She smiled embarrassed, not sure how to explain herself. "That's just your hair. They look natural, and it's not a color that is naturally seen where I am from..."

"Oh!" She blinked before laughing softly. "My hair! Yes, yes, it's natural!"

The warmth in her voice soothed Rina's slight fear of insulting her.

"My name is Haruno Sakura, and I'm the medic in charge of your file." She gestured to Shikamaru's father. "It's Nara Shikaku, our Jōnin Commander." Then she pointed to the blond man leaning against the door frame. "And this is Yamanaka Inoichi, our interrogation specialist."

She sat up slightly, her shoulders tensed before she bring herself to relax. It only lasted a second, but she was sure the three had noticed.

"You were taken to Konohagakure no Sato's Hospital two days ago, after meeting Nara Shikamaru, Akimichi Chōji, Yamanaka Ino and Uzumaki Naruto..."

"Uzumaki?!"

She remembered Naruto, of course, but he had not given her his surname. Uzumaki. The same as her grandmother.

A burst of understanding crossed Sakura's eyes. "Um yes, he's from the same clan as Mito-sama... So, after your arrival at the hospital, Shikamaru handed over your letter to Hokage-sama and a blood test confirmed your membership with the Senju clan. Unfortunately, the council of Konoha can't afford to let you in our walls without prior investigation..."

"And I guess that's where Yamanaka-san comes in."

Without moving from his place, Inoichi nodded. "Effectively. I would have been content with a classic interrogation but, unfortunately, given the delicate position we are in, and the paranoia of our council, I'm afraid it will not be possible."

Rina just raised one of her eyebrows. "So… How is it going to be?"

"The council has specifically requested that I read all your memories through the Jutsu of my clan."

Her second eyebrow joined the first. "All my... They want you... but I'm thirty! How long will it take you?!"

Inoichi's hand began to scratch his forehead, as if to remove a headache he knew he could not avoid. "Unfortunately, it's a process that may take a long time..."

"And let me guess, your council insists that I stay locked up here all the time of the proceedings."

She took their silences for an answer.

"And you will have to tell them all of what you will see in my head?"

Inoichi studied her face in silence and probably finding what he wanted to find, answered her softly. "Only what is relevant... Which will allow them to judge your character and your level of threat to the village and its inhabitants."

She breathed, suddenly exhausting. "Do... Do I still have family alive?"

Sakura's eyes softened, and the two men exchanged glances. It was the Nara who answered.

"Yes, your cousin, Tsunade. She is the last of her family. But I don't think you will be allowed to see her right now..."

"Mmm-mmm. The council I know, I know." She closed her eyes, took a deep breath and finally opened them as she exhaled. Her eyes locked with Inoichi's when she spoke again.

"Okay. I will let you in my head. If it's the only way for me to meet her, I'll do it. Just, will I have to review what you will see or not? One time was enough to me."

"No such thing. On your side, it's like sleeping. I'll be the only one to get the show."

She nodded slowly. "I hate having people in my head..."

Her eyes rested on her sword, which was still lying where she had let her down. With a wave of the hand, she sent it back in her bag.

She ignored Sakura's yelp and stupidly wondered why the light in the room was blinking. Large and warm hands laid her on the bed, and she was asleep before even be fully aware of the situation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit 11/11/19: Corrected some errors.


	6. Chapter 6

Shikaku was the first to leave the room, Inoichi following him closely, leaving Sakura to scan her patient. Outside, he leaned against the mirror that overlooks on the inside and put his eyes on the blonde woman standing here.

Tsunade stared at their guest, her shoulders tense, and her arms crossed.

"The result of the test has arrived. She's really your cousin; you don't  _have_  to stay outside."

Her eyes didn't leave her newly found family member. "She can still be a threat to Konoha..."

She said no more, but Shikaku understood her.

She didn't want to become attached and then find out that she was a threat to her home and the people she had sworn to protect as a Hokage.

"Inoichi, I want a report after each session. How long do you think it will last?"

The man took the time to think before answering. "Honestly, it all depends on the life she had... She is thirty years old then at least three weeks. Maybe more if her life is more adventurous than average. And at the sight of her reaction to our entry, there is a good chance that this is the case."

Tsunade turned to face the Yamanaka, staring into his eyes. She finally nodded and turned to leave the room.

She paused when her hand grabbed the doorknob. "Oh, Shikaku. Your son asked for permission to visit her. I have no problem with it, as long as someone is behind the window to supervise, but I preferred to see with you before giving him my answer."

Shikaku put his eyes on the sleeping young woman and lock his eyes with his best friends before responding to his superior.

"Shikamaru is smart, if he wants to see her, I will not be the one to stop him."

 

* * *

—•—•—

* * *

 

An hour had passed since the leaving of Inoichi, who had just finished his viewing of the first two years of her life.

The poor man.

The moment had been quite awkward, he hadn't really known what to say to her afterwards. Rina didn't dare to imagine his reaction when he saw her years at the Dursley's.

Her thoughts were cut off by someone who knocks on her door. The gesture was purely optional, it was unlikely that she could deny anyone the entry. But it was a nice gesture.

Lying on her bed, her face turned in that direction, she watched the door open on Shikamaru.

She stood up and let her eyes scan the young man as he closed the door.

Physically, he seemed to go well but his face looked tired and his eyes betrayed a feeling she couldn't decipher.

"Hey..." he gestured with his free hand, the other being full of a rectangular wooden box.

"I'm sorry." The surprise crossed his gaze and, frankly, Rina was just as surprised as he was. She had planned to say hello to him before apologizing. "The sensation of Apparating had to be horrible, especially with my shitty concentration. I took a risk, and I could have hurt you, or worse..."

The young man's eyebrows rose so high that they almost touched the line of his hair.

"If anyone has an apology to make, it's me. I lowered my guard, and you had to aggravate your wounds to save my life. I'm sorry, Senju-san." He lowered his upper body in a bow.

Crossing the distance, Rina lifted him with one hand on his shoulder. "Just Rina, that's fine. I'm glad you came to see me; this room is boring to death! "

"I brought something to pass the time. I hope you know how to play Shogi. "

"You bet! I love Shogi!"

A smile spread on Shikamaru's lips, and he settled in front of the small table in the center of the room, setting up the game.

They played for five minutes in silence, before the Nara opened his mouth. "I heard you were not from here."

It was not a question; the sentence was purely there to start a conversation. "Yes, my mother was born here, but I come from a place called  _England_."

Two rounds later, he went on, softly. "You didn't leave anyone behind you?"

Three rounds. "Not family, I'm an orphan. I didn't have anyone, and I realized that the friends I had don't consider me as much as I did for them years ago. The only friend I considered as a brother understood that I want to meet the only family I have left."

A round. "It was not hard? To say goodbye to all that you have always known?"

Four rounds. "I faked my death."

It had the merit of stopping Shikamaru in his movements. " _What?!_  But…  _Why?_ "

She would have liked to think about how formulate her response while playing, but it was Shikamaru's turn and, considering how he looked at her wide-eyed, he didn't intend to play until he had his answer. She sighs, put her elbow on the table and her chin in her hand.

"To be honest, I don't know why I did that. I think it is to end the life that I had there... I hated being Jasmine Potter — it was my name, that of my father — My life as Jasmine Potter was... Painful. I grew hated by the people who were supposed to love me. When I was eleven, I thought it was going to change; I discovered who my father was, the power he had and that I had inherited from him. I thought I finally found my place."

She crossed her eyes with Shikamaru's, the teen felt his breath cut against the intensity of her gaze.

"I was wrong. These people, they wanted me only because I was the child of the prophecy, I was destined to save the wizarding world of his despot. They saw in me only one way to reach their goal. At that moment, I hadn't realized it yet. They had allowed me to feel in my place. I met my godfather, my family. Then he died when I was sixteen. I was first thrown into a war when I was just a child. I fought, I won, I killed. But I felt like I was losing. I wanted to live my life, getting away from this place that had taken me so much but..."

She smiled without joy, her eyes fixed on the game board, and Shikamaru realized that his hand was holding his piece in the air since she started talking. He finished his movement, and she gave him a grateful smile as she scanned the board.

"I was an asset too powerful to be wasted. It didn't matter that I want to study runes like my mother. That I want to travel around the world to forget the horrors of war and all that she had taken to me. I was powerful, important. So, they tried to keep me. I did not let myself be locked. And that's when my relationship with my friends had broken. I realized that they did not see  _me_. So, when I decided to leave my old dimension, I found it easier for all of them to believe that I was dead. Because, in a sense, Jasmine Potter  _is_  dead."

Six turns. "I fought in a war too."

"I know." A pawn moved, a curious glance. "I can see it in your eyes. You have the look of one who has seen the horrors of war  _too young_ ,  _too soon_. You had it all. I can see it when I look in a mirror too. "

Three rounds. "Tell me about you, friends, love..." A slight flush spread over Shikamaru's cheeks. "Ooooh, so there's  _someone_! A girl? A boy? A secret love? One sided?"

He huffed as he moved his piece. "Troublesome... You're worse than Ino..." She just blinked her eyes innocently. "She's not from Konoha; she's a Suna kunoichi... In fact, she's the sister of their Kazekage."

"You see high!" She moved her piece. "And so? You asked her out?"

"What?! No!"

" _Because...?_ "

"...It's too much of a drag...?"

"Please, you don't believe it  _yourself_! You're dying to ask her, but you don't dare to admit it!"

He just scratched the back of his neck and played his next stroke.

She studied the board for a second before a big smile spread over her lips. Shikamaru's eye twitched, surprised by the way her face was illuminated, suddenly he could see the family link with Naruto.

"The game is over, whatever I do you wins in three to six rounds. Put it away and tell me about this girl! What's her name? What did she look like?"

Why was he surrounded by troublesome women? Still, he helped pick up the board and said unwillingly. "Temari..." He had learned not to fight against the women who knew what they wanted long ago.

Fortunately, they were cut off by a knock at the door before Rina could say anything.

Rina glanced at Shikamaru, but he didn't know anything and just shrugged. Seeing that the door was not moving, Rina finally opened her mouth "Yes?"

The door opened slowly, and Naruto's blond head appeared in the crack. "Hey Shikamaru, Rina… I disturb?"

"No, no, not at all! I was about to question Shikamaru about his love life. Yours interests me too!" She moved her eyebrows to accentuate her sentence.

Naruto's face turned red, and he started to stutter. " Uh haha, I can… huh… Come back later... Nothin' is in a hurry -ttebayo!"

Before he has time to do anything, Shikamaru had grabbed him by the ear and dragged him inside. If he were to fall, he would not fall alone.

 

* * *

—•—•—

* * *

 

An hour later, when Shikamaru left the room, leaving Naruto and Rina chatting, he was greeted by his father and Inoichi. They were both installed in front of the table placed against the wall opposite to the mirror. Inoichi dipped in a book and his father in the paperwork.

"I guess you've been here since I walked into this room."

His father just smiled, not even detaching his eyes from his papers. "I knew my son was sharp."

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "What do you think of her?"

Inoichi turned his gaze to study Shikamaru's expression. "What do  _you_  think of her?"

Shikamaru put his eyes on Rina through the glass, she was laughing at something Naruto said, the blond scratching sheepishly the back of his head. "I like her... She's not  _too_  troublesome,  _for a woman.._."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit 11/11/19: Corrected some errors.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyy… Long time no see… I'm really sorry, but between my personal life and the writer's block I really couldn't write anything! That chapter is the only one I've got, but I'm confident about the next one. I don't know how long it will take but, I swear not months! Thank you to all the people who reads/follows/favorites despite my long absence!
> 
> Btw, someone asked me if Rina have/will be able to use chakra. My answer is yes, she has it but no, she'll not use it, because I think that, if the Academy start so soon, it's because the chakra network could be expended at a usable size only when you are a child. So, Rina have chakra, but one of the sizes of a civilian, so she couldn't use Jutsu and stuff…
> 
> Hope you enjoy the chapter! (Not beta'ed, sorry for the mistakes!)

As time goes by, Rina's days were filled with a simple routine. The morning, after a shower and her breakfast, Inoichi will come explore her mind for a few hours, and she will reopen her eyes to a lunch, set at her table. After that, she will play some magical chess against an enchanted chessboard or read one book she had in her bag for the afternoon, unless Shikamaru or Naruto visit her.

She smiled as she remembered the second day of her... captivity.

Shikamaru had put in her the urge to play strategy games again and, in the absence of her Shogi's partner she had taken out one of her magical chess games. The eyes of the teen when they landed on the _moving_ piece was hilarious. And that was even better when he understood that she was  _playing against them_.

She had put away the board to make place for the Shogi's one, but Shikamaru's eyes kept glancing toward it while they played.

"Okay, hold on." She said finally, after one of his almost  _stupid_ moves caused by his distraction. She moved slightly the Shogi's board on the side and put the chess beside it on the table. "It's called Chess, it's the magical version. That's mean that the piece  _could_ move on its own. It's really similar to Shogi, except that the pieces moves are slightly different, and that a dead piece stay dead."

She had looked in Shikamaru's eyes to see interest and curiosity. "If you think that you're able to finish our game without any other  _stupid_  move, I think I can teach you how to play."

He had looked at their board before nervously scratch the back of his neck with a small smile. "Yeah... Sorry 'bout that."

And that's what they did. After that, Shikamaru'll visiting her every two or three days, they'll play one or two Shogi's games and, after, play Chess. He picked the rules pretty quickly, but that wasn't a surprise for her. The kid was smart, and they weren't awfully different from the Shogi's ones.

Every few days, Sakura will pass by in the early evening to check on her. She wasn't really sure  _why_ she would do that; her wounds were healed long ago, but never asked.

A little more than two weeks had passed since she was at Konoha, and she knew that, beside Inoichi, she wouldn't have any visitors for a few days. Shikamaru and Naruto had come by, two day ago, to tell her that they had a mission together, that'll take them out of the village.

Honestly, she was glad of that. She really loved her encounters with the boys, but she also knew that Inoichi was coming close to her war's memories and didn't want them to be here for when they came out.

The last memory that the Yamanaka saw was, according to him, the dead of Dumbledore. She knew that today's seance will hold her  _meeting_ with Lestrange. It's why, when Inoichi finally show up and their small talk was over, she cuts him before he could use his Jutsu.

"Wait." He stops, surprised by her interruption. "What you're about to see... You'll... I think you might need an Anchor."

His eyebrows got high as he looked at her. "You're versed in mind art?"

"I had to. To deal with the memories you are about to watch." She looked down, at her knees, as she played with the hem of her sleeves. "Look, I don't doubt your Jutsu or abilities. I just know my mind. You will need an Anchor. And it's will be even better if that's a person."

An Anchor was a thing or person that a legilimens or mind walker will hold onto, like a security harness, to prevent himself for being overwhelmed by strong memories or foreign mind. Stronger the risk is, stronger the Anchor need to be. A person was the stronger Anchor available, more the mind walker was close to them, stronger they're.

"I don't think that will be necessary. My clan Jutsu is stronger that usually used mind techniques. That allow us a much stronger protection against that kind of situation." Seeing that she wasn't sure about that, he added, "you really don't need to worry about me. It's not my first time in a war veteran mind."

She looked at him, before nodding. "Alright, as you wish. But I would feel much safer if someone else of your clan was beside that glass. Just in case."

Inoichi smiles, before turning his head towards the glass behind which, he knew, was standing Shikaku. He knew that his teammates will do as asked. "Can we begin, now?" He asked playfully, he had confidence in his capacity at anchor himself.

 

* * *

—•—•—

* * *

 

When his teammate and friend turned toward him, Shikaku knew that he was asking him to bring someone and set off. In the way to the aviary, he thought about whom he would ask to come. He knew that he couldn't just bring anybody, he needed someone who was already aware of the global situation.

Unfortunately, that doesn't leave much choice. Turning around, he drops his project to go to the aviary and take the way to Ino's office.

The girl, like her father before her, decided to specialize in interrogations. Ibiki, her actual superior, was really proud of her accomplishment. And Shikaku knows that she was trained by her father in the clan Jutsu's secrets. Hopefully, if something happens, she will know how to react.

She saw him the second he entered the room she shared with three other Jōnin. She ended her talk with one of her colleagues, she walked quickly in his direction. Shikaku made a sign at Ibiki, who was watching from his office, to apologize to take one of his Jōnin, but the man only made a vague wave of his hand, understanding.

"We can speak while we walk." He only said, before she asked any questions. When he was sure nobody was around, he briefed her about what just happened between her Dad and Rina.

"She said that he will need an Anchor?" She frowned and Shikaku looked at her curiously. "I know what's this is, of course, but I never had to use one. I don't know if Dad had, but this is not of common use, not for our Jutsu. Dad says that its stronger than the common mind Jutsu, it's why our protection is stronger."

She stayed silence for the rest of the walk. When they finally saw the door, she added, thoughtfully, "if Dad really bead an Anchor, I don't think I want to know what is in Rina's mind..."

When they stand in front of the glass, Inoichi was still in Rina mind, his hand on her head.

 

* * *

—•—•—

* * *

 

When she opened her eyes again, Rina knew something was wrong. When she saw Inoichi kneeling in front of her, his hands around his head, she knew what was up. That's happened to Iriko-sama, the first she saw that's memories too.

The door opened quickly, and Rina saw from the corner of her eyes Shikaku and Ino burst into the room, but she was already at his side, opening his eyelids to look into his eyes.

They were without focus, moving around like they had too many things to see at once. She turned at Ino, understanding that they brought her because she had the knowledge about their clan Jutsu.

"When you look at the memories, did you saw them with the eyes of the subject, or did you are an external observer?"

Ino, despite her shock to see her Dad in this situation, took only a second to answer the question. "With the subject's eyes."

" _Damn it._ " She cursed in English. With the legilimency, the legilimens is externally watching the memories' event, and that make the memories less oppressive. But if he had watched them in her point of view... "Ino, did you know how to bring back someone overwhelmed by a memory?"

Ino looked at her and shook her head, "No, I never did it before... That's never happened with our Jutsu. Maybe someone else in my clan did..."

"We are a little short in time here..." She was cut by Inoichi, who broke her hold on him to scratch at his face, hurting himself in the process. Shikaku, who was standing behind Ino without knowing what to do to help, rushed to catch his arms and held them behind his back. "Look, Ino, I will need to walk in your father's mind. I can bring him back from there, but I want your agreement. I'm not going in his mind if you didn't want me to."

Ino shared a look with her best friend's dad, and uncle in everything but blood, before looking back at her. "You can bring him back?"

She nodded, "it's not the first time someone reacts like that after watching that particular memories."

The younger girl watched her father, his eyes still as restless as they were when she entered the room and nodded confidently.

Without wasting another second, Rina grabbed Inoichi head and looked in his eyes. " _Legilimens"_

 

* * *

—•—•—

* * *

 

That took her some time but when she finally finds Inoichi in his mind, she knew where she was without a doubt.

Malfoy Manor.

The man was in the center of the room but, unlike Iriko-sama, he wasn't sitting in the floor hugging his legs. He was standing, his eyes fixed on Jasmine while Bellatrix was cutting her arm, laughing madly.

Rina walked until she was standing beside him and put her hand on his shoulder. Startled, he turned his head toward her, and the surprise deformed his features.

Her eyes landed on her younger self; her face hard but was crossed by her tears. But her mouth was shut, despite the profound suffering obviously visible on her features.

"I... I can't find an exit." Inoichi was sincerely surprised by that fact, after all these years as a Shinobi, he had already found a mind with so much security that he had needed an Anchor to defuse it. But never, before, he was sucked by a memory because of its emotional instability.

"I told you, I know my mind." That memory was an ugly scar in her mind and, despite everything she told herself, that scar was still a sensitive one and had a lot of impact upon herself. "What do you think about get out of her?"

"I... I don't know if I can..." He blinked, his eyes traveling between her and Jasmine. "There is no exit."

"Of course, you can. You just have to follow me."

Bellatrix talked suddenly, letting a flow of insults and treats out of her mouth, and Rina blinked when she finally noticed that she was talking in Japanese. She takes note to ask Inoichi when they get back. She never thought about the language differences before...

When Inoichi eyes were solely focused on her, she gives him her hand and directed him toward the metaphorical door she opened when she gets here.

When they blinked again, they're back in their body, in her cell/room. Ino hugged her father as soon as she understood that he was back. The man was surprised by her presence but hugged her back quickly.

She finally let herself on the floor, her legs numb for holding her in that position, and sighed. "Well, that was something!"

Every single soul in the room turned toward her, disbelief in their eyes. She knew that her reaction wasn't a normal one for someone who just witnessed again one of her traumatic memories but... Well, that wasn't the worst, one of them, but not the worst.

If she had to objectively point it, she would say that it was that very second, in the Hogwarts Headmaster's Office, when she pulled back from the pensieve with the knowledge that she has to die. That the man she had looked up to, that same man she had come to thought of as a grandfather, had always known that she needed to die for the war to end.

She wasn't a fool; she knew that they're no way for Dumbledore to have known that she wouldn't just  _die_. For the 'Greater Good', the man had made numerous of dubious choices, and more often than not, they concerned her.

But it was thoughts for another time.

She gathered herself and sat on the bed, the others stood as well, and the silence was strained for full seconds before she cut it. "You will need an Anchor for, at least, the next year of memories. Not all of them are as emotionally, or visually, as messed up but, better safe than sorry."

She could see that Ino's skin was a little too pale, but the girl's emotions were well hidden. "Dad, I could..."

"Nope. No way." Ino looked at her, startled, without understanding her refusal. "Look, Ino-san, I know you're a seasoned Shinobi, and I don't doubt your skills. But I'm not letting you inside my head. In fact, I'm glad Shikamaru-kun and Naruto-kun aren't here, because I didn't want any of them near my memories or your Dad reaction at my memories. And I don't want you either. You have seen too much, and that not a sufficient reason to make you see more."

She didn't know if the younger girl will feel insulted by her words, but she really didn't care, not if that could prevent her from watching her worst memories.

She turned toward Inoichi. "Pick who you want really, if you trust them it's okay with me. Just, choose someone who has seen as much as you."

 

* * *

—•—•—

* * *

 

Inoichi was thankful to not be the one who have to say 'no' to his daughter. He didn't know how she would have reacted if the words were his. His head turned toward Shikaku as Rina finishes speaking. Chozā and him were the only peoples he would trust for something like that, and he was already there. So Shikaku was the obvious choice. His friend nodded shortly, agreeing without the need for him to voice his question.

"Well, it's settled then." Her eyes suddenly lit up with curiosity. "If you don't me asking, how come my memories be in your language?"

Inoichi frowned, he hadn't realized that it wasn't supposed to be. "What do you mean? They're not supposed to?"

She shook her head, " _nope, that's how it's supposed to sound. You know, my native language and all."_  She smiled, probably amused by the three Jōnin's faces. Inochi blinked at the foreign language, that's the first time he'd heard something like that.

He shook his head, thinking about the question. "It's probably because the Jutsu think of it as a secret language. It was designed to use the information stocked in  _your_ brain to translate it in  _my_ brain." That was one of the most reason the Yamanaka mind Jutsu was feared by most of their enemies. Inoichi never came across a secret language or code his Clan Jutsu didn't decode for him. And, apparently, Rina's native language wasn't a problem either.

"Uuh… Neat. That seem useful." She nodded thoughtfully. "Well, ready when you are."

Ino exited the room, closing the door behind her, and Inoichi put his hand on Rina's head again. He started his Jutsu when he sensed Shikaku's hand on his shoulder, bringing the Jōnin Commander with him.

 

* * *

—•—•—

* * *

 

That afternoon, as Rina settled herself to read one of her books, someone knocked softly at her door. She turned her gaze curiously toward it, not sure who that would be. "Yes?"

The door opened slowly reveling Shikaku, and Rina was astonished by the similarities between him and his son. Standing here, a Shogi's box under his arm, they were obvious. He doesn't close the door and looked at her with curiosity. After that morning Rina was almost expecting pity, but he wasn't looking at her with anything like that, and she was relived at that.

"Shikamaru can't really play with you and… It would be a shame if you let your skills decrease while in his absence." His lips were curled in a smirk, his hands in his pocket like her answer didn't matter.

"Yeah… A shame, isn't it?"

He closes the door and sat in front of the table, settling the game while she puts her book back in her bag. Shikaku eyes it curiously, "we tried to put your bag away when you were unconscious. No matters our securities, it kept coming back."

She chuckled sheepishly, scratching the back of her head as she seats in front of him. "I put a spell on it to make it come back to me, no matter what. I don't think anything could keep it away."

He hmm'ed thoughtfully, moving his piece to begin the game. "And the game you taught him to play, you did it too?"

"The  _Chess?_ No, I brought it like that. I think I have some books who explain how to do it, though." She frowned, thinking about it.

"And that's the only magic games?"

Their game lasted almost three hours, and Shikaku kept questioning her about the Magic, his questions only about little things like games or food. She knew what he was doing, of course.

After that morning, when they had to witness the worst part of the magic, he knew that they had to be remembered about the good part too. She didn't know if he does that for him or her, but she couldn't bring herself to ask. And, really, she didn't care.

 

* * *

—•—•—

* * *

 

That night, when she was all alone, Rina lied on her bed and stared at the ceiling. She hated thinking about the war, what she had lost and who she had failed.

Above everyone, Remus was the one she had failed the most, she knew it. Long ago, when he asked her to be his son's godmother, she had been honored. But when the war ended and she had needed to run away from England, Andromeda's opinion wasn't different from the Weasley's.

She didn't understand, saying that she has responsibilities towards the Wizarding World and Teddy but... She was a kid; she chooses to run. She didn't hear from Andromeda since that, and the letters she later send to Teddy come back unread. She wasn't sure how the woman and the kid will react to the news of her dead from Iriko-sama, maybe they will mourn her, but not knowing Teddy will always be her biggest regret.

She had seen him from a distance, before her 'jump', with his grandmother, and he seemed healthy and happy. At that moment, she had thought about ask them both to go with her but… Teddy was almost at the age to enter Hogwarts, his friends were there, they still considerate the Weasley like their family… He didn't  _know_ her, and the birthday/Christmas' gift she sent him through George weren't enough for her to be his  _family_. She couldn't ask them that, she hadn't the right to do it. Not after all this time.

Turning her bed, she tried to think about something else. Her eyes landed on her Chess board, and she smiled a little. After their three hours long play, Shikaku insisted on playing a game with her, arguing that 'he couldn't let his son be better than him at  _any_ strategic games'. She agreed, not surprised when he told her that he had heard her explications of the rules. She knew that they weren't going to let her alone with someone, the one-way mirror was here for something after all.

The game was surprisingly  _fun_  and just thinking about it made her smile and erase her sad thoughts about Teddy.

When she closed her eyes to finally sleep, she couldn't help but think that she will love if Shikaku could come again.


End file.
